All posts filed under: Ramblings

Nooo! I open my kitchen cabinet, and what do I see? Yet another gadget, cut down in the prime of life. Oh, the humanity! This is what I get for having agents of entropy do the dishes. (Those agents of entropy also know my kids.) A roving band of teenagers constantly remind me the universe trends towards chaos. No matter how many times I say “Gently! Careful! Easy there!”, they still bang stuff around like it’s made out of adamantium. This time, it was the 1-cup beaker from my set of Oxo Measuring Beakers. Sigh. Time to re-order. Kitchen gadgets aren’t supposed to be consumables, right? Oxo 7-Piece Measuring Beaker Set [Amazon.com] What do you think? Share your tales of kids destroying everything in the comments section below. Enjoyed this post? Want to help out DadCooksDinner? Subscribe to DadCooksDinner [via email] and share this post with your friends. Want to contribute directly? Donate to my [Tip Jar], or buy something from [Amazon.com] through the links on this site. Thank you.

Unfortunately, “Death and Taxes” is not just a metaphor this year. I’m taking the week off; I have a family funeral to attend, and I have to get my tax documents to my bookkeeping service. I’ll be back next week. Until then, do me a favor? Tell someone you love that you love them.

I was chatting with a foodie friend at work, and she complained about cooking garbanzo beans. “Chickpeas!” I said. “They’re easy in the Instant Pot!” (Garbanzo beans! Chickpeas! Garbanzo beans! Chickpeas!) Then I told her about the joys of crispy chickpeas, especially when you cook them from dried. Now, you don’t have to cook them yourself – the recipe will work with canned chickpeas. But I’m always surprised by how much flavor home-cooked dried beans have compared to canned. If you’ve never cooked chickpeas, and you have an Instant Pot, you have to try them. Have to, I say! (Pounds fist on table.) Mia, this recipe’s for you: Recipe: Pressure Cooker and Oven Roasted Chickpeas Pressure Cooker and Oven Roasted Chickpeas – DadCooksDinner What do you think? Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below. Related Posts Basic Recipe: Pressure Cooker Chickpeas Pressure Cooker HummusPressure Cooker Chickpeas with Toasted Parmesan Bread Crumb CrustMy other Pressure Cooker Recipes Enjoyed this post? Want to help out DadCooksDinner? Subscribe to DadCooksDinner via email and share this …

Ugh. My weight has crept up again over the last year. (One of the occupational hazards of food blogging.) I want to weigh 225 pounds; I was so close last summer. Then I had hernia surgery and sat around for a couple of weeks recovering. More important, I stopped paying attention to what I ate at about that time and my weight started creeping up. To slow down the extra pounds, I started exercising a few months ago, determined to fill the exercise rings on my Apple watch. And, even though I’ve met my exercise goal for (checks phone) the last 131 days, my weight still went up. It seems to have leveled off, bouncing around 245 pounds for the last month or so. That’s…not good. It’s the New Year, and it’s time to carefully follow my rules for losing weight. Portion control is the big one – I keep reaching for a second helping, even when I know I shouldn’t. Wish me luck… What do you think? Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the …

Merry Christmas, everyone! Happy holidays to you and yours, and thank you for following along on my cooking adventures in 2018. (The “beams of Christmas lights” is a trick I learned from Tony & Chelsea Northrup’s YouTube channel. Thanks, Chelsea!) Enjoyed this post? Want to help out DadCooksDinner? Subscribe to DadCooksDinner via email and share this post with your friends. Want to contribute directly? Donate to my Tip Jar, or buy something from Amazon.com through the links on this site. Thank you.

ZAVOR is the inspired creation of the team behind Fagor America. After closing its doors, the minds behind the top pressure cooker brand in the country put all their efforts into continuing the product line on their own terms, enter ZAVOR. ZavorAmerica.com I was worried we were losing the Fagor line of pressure cookers. Great news! I was wrong! Zavor has risen from the ashes of Fagor America. My long-time favorite stovetop cooker, the Fagor Duo, is back as the Zavor Duo (along with the Zavor Elite, a Macy’s exclusive, and the Versa, a Bed Bath and Beyond exclusive..) Even better, the Fagor Lux electric pressure cooker line is now the Zavor Lux, Lux Edge, and Lux LCD, all in 4-, 6-, and 8-quart sizes. They’re my favorite “Non Instant Pot” electric pressure cookers, and I’m glad they’re still around to keep Instant Pot on their toes. Zavor fixed a couple of my complaints from earlier models. They changed the gasket holder on the 8-quart lids, and they added a “Mute” feature to stop the …

Charlie Brown: I can’t cook a Thanksgiving dinner. All I can make is cold cereal, and maybe toast. Linus: That’s right, I’ve seen you make toast. [Charles M. Schultz, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving] Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone!

Look what was waiting on the front step when I got home – my Instant Pot Max! They’re in stock at Amazon with immediate shipping. (Much to my surprise. I didn’t know it was coming until I opened the box; I missed Amazon’s “we’re shipping” email on Sunday.) From my couple of minutes with the Max: It doesn’t have the twitchy knob that the Ultra (hooray!). It feels substantial, with heavier weight and higher build quality. And…that’s all I’ve got in the few minutes I’ve played with it. More to come once I’ve had time to put it through its paces, but for now…my new toy is here. Whee!

Remember a few weeks ago, when I was complaining about the missing Instant Pot Max? Guess what – it’s coming! The Max is available for pre-order at Amazon (Instant Pot Max at Amazon.com link) and Williams-Sonoma. (I’m an Amazon affiliate, so if you use the Amazon link, I get a a small commission, and thanks). Amazon isn’t giving any hints about the release date; Williams-Sonoma says my order is backordered, with an expected delivery date of December 14th. Hopefully, it’s an early Christmas Present for myself. Now, Is the Max worth its $199 price? Not really, when the Instant Pot Duo Plus costs only $129 (and even less on sale – hold out for Black Friday if cost matters.) I don’t think the Max Pressure is going to change the Instant Pot experience much. But, oh, the Max looks so good. I wants it, I needs it, my preciousssss…ahem. I meant to say: if you love your Instant Pot and want the top of the line model (like I do), then the Max is almost here! …

Fall is my favorite time of year…and a few weeks ago I started to worry. It was October, and the temperatures were in the upper 80’s. That’s good for July, but October? Not so much. Luckily, that was summer’s last gasp. Fall is here! It’s jacket weather, we had our first frost, and fall colors are bursting out along the roadways. It’s time for a hearty lentil soup. Following up on Tuesday’s Hungarian theme, I’m making Lentil soup with Hungarian Sausage. Now, you don’t need Hungarian sausage – any smoked sausage will do – but I have some nearby sausage sources and I like to get the good stuff. Recipe: Pressure Cooker Lentil Sausage Soup Pressure Cooker Lentil Sausage Soup – DadCooksDinner What do you think? Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below. Related Posts Instant Pot Quick Lentil Curry Pressure Cooker Lentil and Bacon Soup Pressure Cooker Lentil and Hambone Soup My Pressure Cooker Recipes Index Enjoyed this post? Want to help out DadCooksDinner? Subscribe to DadCooksDinner via email and share …

Can’t talk now. Busy. Gotta run. Work, work, work. We had a software upgrade over the long weekend, and I’ve been working 12 to 18 hour days ever since. What do I do when I work late and have to squeeze in dinner before another scheduled install at 8:30 PM? I give in to the dark side…of the chicken. Instant Pot Chicken Legs, here we come. Recipe: Pressure Cooker Chicken Legs with Herb Rub Recipe here: Pressure Cooker Chicken Legs with Herb Rub – [DadCooksDinner] An update to the recipe: I use Penzeys Sunny Paris Seasoning instead of the Italian Seasoning. Any herb blend will work, but I’m in love with Sunny Paris. They hooked me with a free sample; I’ve gone through three more full-sized jars since then. Sunny Paris goes with chicken, pork, and vegetables – Especially vegetables. If there’s a Penzeys near you, try a jar. You won’t be disappointed. What do you think? Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below. Related Posts My Pressure Cooker Recipes IndexMy Pressure Cooker …

Big news in the eBook world: Walmart teamed up with Kobo to make the Walmart eBook store! Walmart and…Kobo? Who’s that? In the US, Amazon is the elephant in the eBookstore, with the vast majority of the market. Outside the US, Toronto-based Kobo is giving Amazon a run for their money, making them a close second in global eBook sales. Kobo is a subsidiary of Rakuten, a Japanese e-commerce giant. Rakuten also owns OverDrive, which most libraries use to loan out eBooks. In other words, Kobo has some eBook muscle. Walmart and Kobo are a fascinating pairing that could give Amazon serious competition. Kobo has a reputation for well-made e-readers as well as the usual reader apps for iOS or Android, and a vast eBook selection to rival Amazon’s Kindle store. Walmart is…Walmart. You may have heard of them? As an eBook author, I love the idea of e-readers promoted in every Walmart in the country. That means, at least indirectly, my books are now sold in Walmart! As an eBook reader, I like the …

Ten years. Holy cow. In 2008 I was a food fanatic with a seven-year old, a five-year old, and a three-year old, and a brand new blogspot account. Now I have a high school senior, a daughter itching to get her learners permit, and a just-turned teen. And a successful food blog. It’s easy to get caught up in the rhythm of posting every week. Stepping back, seeing where I am now, and how much I’ve grown in ten years? That’s harder. I’m wired to worry about today’s problems, not to sit back and reflect. But, ten years is such a big, round number that I can’t let it slide by. So, here are a few thoughts about ten years of writing DadCooksDinner. What have I learned? Get better by doing the work. How did I learn to cook? I cooked dinner every night for my family. How did I learn to write? I wrote ten years worth of blog posts. I was a hobbyist photographer back before I had kids, but the improvement in …

Summer is winding down. This week started school for the kids, and tonight’s low is supposed to be 50°F. (Which I love – I’m a Fall weather kind of guy.) There’s still time for some late summer grilling, so I pulled out my recipe for pork ribeyes (aka bone-in loin chops) I keep coming back to paprika, garlic, and coriander as my default spice rub; I love how those flavors go with milder meats, like pork and chicken. Also, this is the first pork recipe I wrote after finding out the USDA changed their pork guidance from “overcook it” (160°F) to “just right” (145°F with a 3 minute rest.) The National Pork Board finally convinced the USDA that home cooks know to use digital thermometers – the key to a good chop. Don’t overcook your pork chops! (I recommend the $99 Thermapen thermometer if you’re a fanatic like me, or the $30 ThermoPop thermometer if you’re not. I’m a Thermoworks affiliate, so I may be biased, but I feel like I’m cooking blind if I …

About Me

&nbsp

WELCOME TO DAD COOKS DINNER

I'm Mike Vrobel, a dad who cooks dinner every night. I'm an enthusiastic home cook, and I write about pressure cooking, rotisserie grilling, and other food topics that grab my attention. Learn more about me...